Want
by Queen Of Arkham
Summary: Bethryl fic with a little bit of mix-up of events in the most recent episodes. Non-Canon but not AU. I don't know, just how I would have rather seen it go down. Lol. There's a lot from the episodes, but I've made slight changes.
1. Chapter 1

The leaves beneath their feet crunched unpleasantly. Every step could unintentionally attract walkers, and they weren't ready to deal with that. Beth had hurt her ankle, and Daryl was supporting her along the way. It was a slow trek, but he knew they couldn't risk being spotted by a horde.

They came across a small cottage. It reeked of death but that was a smell they had long since learned to stomach. Daryl left her to stand by a tree as he check the place out. Best case scenario, they found a place to stay for a couple days, worst case? Chock full of walkers. He closed his eyes briefly before opening the door to face whatever was in the room.

The main room was empty, save for a highly decayed carcass. He made his way through the house quickly, but silently, checking the bathroom and bedrooms, nary a walker to be seen. As he made his way back through the kitchen he spotted a couple bottles of whiskey tucked under the kitchen sink. He raised an eyebrow at them and smirked.

Outside, Beth waited on bated breath. Her ears strained for the sound of anything, just to keep look out for walkers. She longed for the times when she didn't have to worry about walkers, like back on the farm, or at the prison. Thinking of the prison hurt. Any memories associated with that place brought her right back to her father. The scene replayed in her head, watching the Governor heartlessly chop her father's head off. Her heart tore and she felt tears welling in her eyes.

She shook them away. She needed to be strong for Daryl, he didn't need some emotional wreck of a girl dragging him down. She knew how he looked at her. She was another Sophia waiting to happen. He wouldn't get close to her. He refused. She peaked around the tree as he emerged from the cabin and waved for her to come in. She limped over to him, and as she reached the porch, he picked her up and carried her inside. He sat her down on a recliner in the living room and took of her shoe. He pulled up her pant leg and checked out her ankle. It was only slightly swollen, so it was more than likely just sprained. He knew she'd need to rest for a couple days, and he hoped this place would hold out that long. He got up and went into the bedroom. When he returned, he had the sheet from the bed and he was carefully tearing it. He wrapped up her ankle for her and she sat back in the recliner.

"You'll need to stay off of that for a couple days" he told her gruffly. "We'll stay here until you can walk on it, or until we're run out of here."

She stayed quiet, gently nodding her head. The recliner felt amazing. She could feel her body really sink into it. A wave of exhaustion washed over her and her eyelids began to droop. He grinned to himself.

"Get some sleep." He told her. "I'll be here when you wake up."

"No, what if something happens...?" She said, her words slurred with tiredness.

"I'm going to be putting boards on the windows and reinforcing the door. Get some sleep. I'll wake you if anything happens," he told her, "I promise.

He wasn't sure why he added that last bit on there, but he watched as her eyes drooped some more and she tried to fight the sleepiness. 'She's so beautiful...' He thought to himself. He shook his head roughly. What in the hell was he thinking? She was 17. He was 34. If this wasn't the middle of the zombie apocalypse she'd be certified Grade A Jailbait.

But she had grown into a woman, after everything she'd dealt with. She wasn't a kid anymore. He knew she wished she was, but hell, Carl wasn't even a kid anymore. He caught himself staring again as he was thinking.

Sorry so short, wrote this before bed. I might be able to have an update before work tonight, but in any case, thanks for reading, and please, please, please review. I haven't done much writing since I left high school 4 years ago and I'm really trying to get back into it, I'm just having a little bit of trouble, so constructive criticism is more than welcome!


	2. Chapter 2

When Beth woke up, a lurch of panic hit her chest. The room was dark, how long had she slept? Where was Daryl? She sat up quickly to look around the room better and pulled the lever to put the leg rest for the recliner back down. Just as she moved to stand up, Daryl appeared from the hallway carrying a makeshift lantern. He noticed her moving and moved toward her quickly, sitting the lantern on the counter.

"Beth, you can't get up, remember, your ankle." He told her. "Its not gonna do us any good hanging around here if you don't actually rest up." She nodded sleepily at him and sat back in the chair.

"I was just worried... It was dark when I woke up, how long was I asleep?" She asked.

"A solid couple hours. You were sleepin' like a baby. Started snorin' too. Thought walkers were gonna hear you there for a minute but you managed to change positions and stop." He grinned at her. He had thought her snoring was cute. Not very often you heard noises like that coming out of such tiny young girl.

"Gee thanks Daryl." She said, cheeks slightly red. She slid to the edge of the chair and stood up gently, focusing her weight on her other leg. "Anything interesting in here?" She asked him, limping towards the kitchen, gasping ever so slightly whenever her bad foot came in contact with the ground. She rest herself against the counter and looked around.

"There's not much in here. I don't think anyone has been here since everything went down, but at the same time it doesn't look like these people were very well off. There's not much in here. Honestly that recliner is the nicest thing in this dump." He told her.

Her eyes wandered around the dimly lit kitchen. She spotted the whiskey stored beneath the counter and picked up a bottle. "I've never had alcohol before..." She said softly, staring at the bottle.

"Oh come on now," Daryl said indignantly, "you're a young country girl, straight off the farm. You're what... Seventeen now? You can't tell me you never had a night where you stole one of your friend's dad's beers from the fridge and tried it?"

"I'm eighteen now. My birthday would've been a couple weeks ago." She told him sadly. "D-Dad didn't allow any kind of alcohol consumption in the house. Always told us he'd beat our behinds raw if he ever caught us with it. He didn't like how it made a man. Said it was poison. But I've always wanted to try it. Would... would you drink with me tonight?" She asked timidly.

"I don't think that would be wise there Beth. We need to stay in a right mindset." He told her. He paused for a moment. "Why didn't you say anything about your birthday...?" He asked her.

"I really didn't think it was that big of a deal. Its the end of the world. You don't get parties or celebration for another year on this hellhole. I can celebrate when we're all safe." She looked at the ground sadly.

"Hey now, eighteen is a big deal. Hell, I bought my first pack of legal smokes on my eighteenth birthday. Granted I'd been smoking a long time before that, but that's besides the point." A strange pain seared through his chest. It was odd to think about how the little victories from before were completely gone. There wouldn't be any cigarettes to buy when Carl turned eighteen, if he ever did. The thought almost hurt him a little. It wasn't that big of a deal, but there were so many things that were almost like ancient history now.

As Daryl stared off, seemingly lost in thought, Beth maneuvered through the kitchen, trying to locate some kind of clean cup. Fortunately she was able to find two and she poured one for herself and one for Daryl. She slid the cup over to him and he shook his stupor away.

"Come on now, what'd I just tell ya?" he asked her angrily.

"Please, its my first shot. I don't want to take it alone." She said earnestly. She looked directly into his eyes. "Please...?" She said, trying to invoke her best puppy dog look, even though the dirt and blood that certainly caked her face probably did not help much at all.

With the second please, Daryl felt himself caving into her. "Okay, one, maybe two shots. What kind is it anyway?" He asked, lifting his cup and sniffing it.

She shrugged. "The bottle says Johnny Walker on it. I've never heard of it. Is it any good?"

"Girl, you got lucky. This is some high class whiskey. Most expensive brand there is. This stuff isn't gut rot."

She giggled. "So shall we? Should we say cheers to something?" She said nervously.

"Sure, whatcha got?"

"Cheers to you and I. Toughest sonsabitches out here." She said proudly, holding up her cup.

He laughed. "Sure, I can drink to that." He brought his cup up to meet hers. "Cheers to us, makin' it this far."

They both drank. Beth coughed slightly, blushing.

"That was disgusting."

"Its an acquired taste." He said smirking. She poured more into both cups.

"Guess I have some work to do." She said before she took another shot. She grimaced. "About how long does it take?"

"Well that one wasn't so bad was it? You didn't even cough." He said after drinking his. She shot a glare his direction. "You know, you've grown quite a bit since I met you. You've become a strong woman." Where was this coming from? He looked down into the cup, almost embarrassed as Beth beamed.

"Thanks Daryl. That means a lot. I didn't think you like me at all. I figured you saw me as a burden." She told him, avoiding looking at him as she poured more in their cups.

"A burden? No. Responsibility...? Maybe. You have the potential to be a bonafide badass out here, you just need to learn the skills. And honestly, its kind of nice to have someone who depends on me." Where was all this crap coming from? The alcohol? Daryl was never really the touchy feely kind.

Beth paused, almost as though she was frozen. She moved closer to him. "Its been so lonely out here. I'm not so good with being alone." She told him.

He looked up at her. He shook his head and stood up, slightly dazed. "No, this can't go where I can tell this is going. I can't let this. You're drinking, its going to your head. You've had two other boyfriends, and you're not even sad about them. It hasn't been too lonely for you."

Beth stood up as well. "Its not like that. You make me feel safe. You held me once before. Why can't it just be like that? I just want someone to hold me." She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. "Its never going to be 'okay' again, so why we just take advantage of what we have here. When you held me after Zach died... I felt safe. I know it sounds like stupid girlish nonsense, but I wasn't afraid."

"You want to make the best out of a bad situation huh?" He said angrily. He couldn't help but feel happy at her word, but he knew he needed to keep his mind away from that. He wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around her and hold her, because she needed it. But he wasn't going to the best of a bad situation.

"Daryl its not like that!" She exclaimed. "Please, just..." She pushed into his arms and hugged him tight. As angry as he was trying to be, he couldn't be. He hugged her tightly and held her close to him.

"I'm sorry" She whispered sadly to him.

"There's nothing to be sorry for, I was acting like an ass."

She giggled through her tears and he smiled.

"Would you like to actually sit down and get some more sleep?" He asked her. She shrugged.

They separated and rested themselves against the recliner, his arm around her. She fell asleep first and then he slightly drifted off, happy to feel the warmth of another person pressed up against him. Maybe he could get used to this.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day when Daryl awoke, he quickly moved away from Beth, though carefully enough to insure she didn't fall over. He got up and checked the perimeter making sure everything was still safe. However, he couldn't push the thought away of how he liked waking up next to her. Feeling her body heat pressed up against his gave him a rush that he couldn't describe. Hope perhaps? In any case, he couldn't allow himself to get attached to her. It wouldn't end well for either of them. He was better alone than trying to watch his and someone else's ass.

'_You could train her to fight..._' a small voice said in his head. '_You could have someone by your side, and she could help protect you. Its been awhile since you've had someone watching out for you.'_

He shook his head trying to get rid of the thoughts as he walked back into the cabin. Beth had started to stir and he watched as she wiggled around to get comfortable again. Then her eyes shot open in fear. Such sweet innocence turned into fear so quick. Her eyes found him and they drooped as a sleepy smile came across her face.

"Is everything ok?" She asked with a yawn. He couldn't help but grin at her.

"Everything's fine at the moment. You feelin' okay Beth?"

"Its still a little tender." She said massaging it. She gingerly started to raise herself up. Daryl wrapped her arm around his neck and helped her to her feet. He turned his head to check on her to find her looking up at him, their faces only inches apart. He could feel her hot breath on his lips and it took everything in him not push his lips on hers. He had to learn to control himself.

After a moment of silence, Beth let out a giggle and looked away. "S-Sorry Daryl." She said blushing. Daryl helped her walk across the floor.

"Looks like its getting better. Maybe one more night here and then we'll get a move on. We need to keep moving." He told her as he helped her sit back down on the recliner. He turned and put his head in his hands.

"I'm sorry I'm holding you back..." Beth said sadly from the recliner.

Pain struck through his heart, that wasn't what was happening. "S'not like that." he said gruffly.

"Then what's wrong with you? You're being exceptionally... Withdrawn." She said, hesitantly.

It was as though his mind became a tornado and the words that kept popping up in the back of his mind disappeared. "Look its just not like that! Ok?" He said angrily.

"I-I'm sorry..." She stuttered.

He turned to her, he wanted to take her in his arms and comfort her and apologize.

"I... I'm sorry Beth." He said sadly. He was so tired of feeling like an ass. He couldn't help but feel like this was her fault. She'd been the one to offer up liquor and got his head all in a twist. '_You didn't have to take it you know..._' the little voice in his head chimed in. He turned away from her and walked toward the door. "I'll back in a moment. You... you stay here." He went out the door and slammed it without another word.

The air was cool, he hadn't realized how late it had gotten. He hoped a little walk in the woods would help him clear his head. When had it become his responsibility to babysit some little girl? He didn't wanna play guardian, he didn't wanna always have to watch out for her. Most importantly, he didn't want to put himself in a position where this could impair his judgment. The only person he could rely on was himself and he knew that. So why was he so concerned about the well being of this stupid little girl. He thought back to the country club. She had hurt her ankle on the way out of the hellhole and his first instinct was to grab her and go. If Merle had still been around he would've given him an earful about worrying about some little girl. Sayin' if she can't fend for herself why was it his job? He isn't her daddy.

But she wasn't some little girl. She was Beth. Hi- no. He stopped himself there. She was not his Beth. But the pulling in his chest told him that wasn't the truth, regardless of whether he'd like to admit it. He knew deep down he wanted to protect her. More so, he wanted her.

Questioning flew to his mind around the origins of these thoughts. Was it just because they were trapped together? Maybe. Did it really matter though? Just because this could be something that started from a bad situation didn't mean much. Did it?

He went back in the house and poured himself another drink, not saying a word to Beth, who was sitting on the floor arms resting on her knees, head planted in it. He took the the shot and poured himself another one and swiftly took that. By this point Beth had lifted her head to see what was causing the noise.

"You want one?" He muttered to her, extending his glass to her. She shook her head, eyes wide. "Suit yourself." He took the second shot and slammed the cup down. "Come on now. You were all ready to drink last night, where's your enthusiasm now girl?" He picked the bottle up and poured her some and forced it into her hands. "Drink it." was all he said and he turned away from her. She hesitantly sipped the cup. It made a soft impact as she sat it down on the floor. He turned back around and took it up. He filled it again and handed it back to her. "Go on now. So we're even." His words were becoming slightly slurred. She drank yet again.

Outside, a groan of a Walker came and Daryl perked up. "You're gonna learn how to shoot this crossbow, ya hear? Just in case anything happens to me." He took hold of her arm and jerked her up off the floor and out the door.

Fortunately there was only one because Daryl was a little past tipsy and wasn't being a very good shot. He hauled her right up next to him and put the bow in front of her. She struggled to get away but his grip was firm.

"Its really easy. A monkey could do it." He told her and aimed at the walker. When he pulled the trigger the arrow landed in its shoulder, pinning it to the tree. He had to let her go to reload but quickly pulled her back to him, her scent tickling his nose. He shook his head free of the thoughts and aimed again. The shot landed in the walkers neck and Daryl let out a hearty laugh. A look of horror covered Beth's face as she realized she was enjoying this. She struggled harder for him to let her go.

When he did to reload his crossbow she moved farther away from him this time. He realized it and shot the last arrow at the walker, which landed in its other shoulder. It groaned unpleasantly at the two of them but Daryl ignored it.

"Go get them, its your turn." He said lowly. When she didn't move, he moved toward it and started pulling them out. Beth ran up to the walker and promptly stabbed him in the head. This through Daryl in a rage.

"What'd you go an' do that for?!" He yelled at her. "We was havin' fun!"

"This isn't supposed to be fun!" She yelled back. "They were people once!"

"Well they ain't people anymore!" He yelled at her.

"What is wrong with you?!" She yelled back. "I know when you look at me all you see is another dead girl. You got the short end of the stick yet again, didn't you? Stuck with poor little farmer girl. I'm not Michonne. I'm not Maggie or Carol! I'm stupid little Beth!"

"What do you want from me girl?!" He asked, venom rising in his voice. He knew she was somewhat right. But he had chosen this path. He could've just left her.

"I want you to act like you care! Like you give a damn about anything or anyone!" 

"I do care! Obviously I care about you or you probably wouldn't still be here!"

Throughout their argument, they'd begun inching closer to each other, volume remaining the same. Daryl currently had two things on his mind, giving this girl a piece of his mind and kissing her, long and deep. Pushing her up against the cabin and maybe taking things back indoors.

"We've lost so many of our own! We're probably the only ones left! You're never going to see Rick again! Or Carl or Glenn. Sure enough you'll probably never going to see Maggie again either!" He could feel the pain letting off of his chest now and knew he was probably opening up more than he normally would. "Your dad Beth... Your dad... I probably could've done something, stopped the damn Govenor. He rolled right up to our doors dammit. And I didn't do anything till it was too late. Its my fault... Its all my fault..." He felt the tears start to fall down his face. Beth's face had softened and she tried to hold his arm and he pulled away from her and turned his back to her. "You're all I have left from what little bit of family I've had since everything happened." She pulled him towards her and wrapped her arms around his waist. He hugged her tightly and buried his face in her hair.

"I'm sorry..." was all she could muster. She looked up at him and he looked down at her. The stood for a moment, in silence locked in embrace.

He moved a hand up and wiped a tear from her face. Her face was so soft on his palm. He held her face there for a moment, and then without a thought he pushed his lips on hers. She responded to his kiss excited. He picked her and tried to head towards the door. He accidently collided into the wall outside of the door but he took the opportunity to move his mouth from his and down to her neck. Her sweat tasted sweet on his tongue, but not as sweet as her lips. He didn't want the moment ruined by a walker, so he picked her back up and carried her through the door.

A/N: Don't worry, I'll continue this scene. I'm getting distracted by guests so I figured I'd go ahead and post the chapter and continue it later. Enjoy my dears and please please please please review.


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